Time's Arrow Part 1
In the Time's Arrow ' |image= |series= |production=40275-226 |producer(s)= |story=Joe Menosky |script=Joe Menosky Michael Piller |director=Les Landau |imdbref=tt0708828 |guests=Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan, Jerry Hardin as Samuel Clemens, Michael Aron as Jack London, Barry Kivel as Doorman, Ken Thorley as Seaman, Sheldon Peters Wolfchild as Joe Falling Hawk, Jack Murdock as Beggar, Marc Alaimo as Frederick La Rouque, Milt Tarver as Federation Scientist, Majel Barrett as Computer voice, Michael Hungerford as Roughneck, Pamela Kosh as Mrs Carmichael, James Gleason as Apollinaire, Mary Stein as Devidian woman, William Boyett as San Francisco policeman, Alexander Enberg as Young reporter, Bill Cho Lee as Male patient |previous_production=The Inner Light |next_production=Time's Arrow Part 2 |episode=S05E26 |airdate=15 June 1992 |previous_release=The Inner Light |next_release=Time's Arrow Part 2 |story_date(s)=45959.1 |previous_story=The Inner Light |next_story=Time's Arrow Part 2 }} =Summary= The Enterprise is recalled to Earth on a priority mission pertaining to evidence of aliens on the planet 500 years ago. They are shown a cavern near Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco containing relics of the 19th century, and the severed head of Data. The Enterprise crew finds evidence pointing to a race of shapeshifters and cellular fossils native to the planet of Devidia II. Taking Data's second head, the Enterprise travels to the planet, and discovers a temporal disturbance on the planet. While there are no life forms visible, Troi senses the presence of suffering humans, and the crew realizes that the aliens are slightly out of phase with time. Data notes that his android body has a phase discriminator that would allow him to see the aliens, and Captain Picard reluctantly allows him to do so. Data, once in phase with the aliens, describes them to the crew as absorbing strands of light from a device in the center of the cavern but otherwise appear benign. However, as he observes, two aliens enter a time portal that he is drawn into; Data finds himself on Earth in San Francisco in the 19th century. Data quickly recognizes he needs money to operate, and is able to win a sizable amount beating card sharks at their own game in poker. Taking residence in a local hotel, Data claims to be an inventor, befriending the bell hop (who is in fact Jack London) to help in acquiring parts that will help him build a detector to find the aliens. Data recognizes Guinan, a long-lived El-Aurian and fellow Enterprise crew member, in a newspaper photo, and goes to a reception she will be attending. As she is speaking with Samuel Clemens (better known by his pen name, Mark Twain), Data tries to ask her questions about the future believing her to have followed him back in time, but realizes that she is native to 1893 and has yet to meet the Enterprise crew; Data's language intrigues Clemens and he begins to follow Data and Guinan around. Meanwhile, the Enterprise crew has determined how to build a similar phase discriminator to allow them to also see the aliens and go back in time to rescue Data. Guinan urges Picard to go along with the away team as, otherwise, they will have never met in the past and could change history. Picard and the rest of the away team activate the phase discriminator and see the same aliens as Data described, but discover that the strands of light they are consuming are human life forces, taken at the moment of death. The away team uses the time portal to travel back to the past to put a stop to the aliens. =Errors and Explanations= Plot Oversights # Data betting one dollar, instead of the agreed ante of fifty cents, without drawing any comment from the other players. Data was only given a trio of one dollar coins in exchange for the communicator. # Worf claiming that their bodies would have turned to dust if they died in the cavern in 1893. Worf may be assuming there is soming in the soil that would disolve biological material. Internet Movie Database Incorrectly regarded as goofs # After discussing Data, Riker and Troi join Data in the turbolift, which continues on its way. However, neither of the two tells the turbolift where they want to go, as they ordinarily would, but exit with Data at his destination. While this is indeed an unusual procedure, it could be argued that Riker and Troi assumed correctly that Data was heading in their direction, i.e. the bridge, since all bridge officers had been called to their stations only moments earlier. Nit Central # Shira Karp on Wednesday, May 24, 2000 - 12:26 pm: Continuing my thread from "City on the Edge of Forever"... TIME TRAVEL AND HYGEINE. Crusher correctly identifies the aliens' strategy as time travel back to a disease-ridden era. Why do we not see the five officers in the landing party getting their shots before they go? And why aren't they taking pasteurized micro-sealed ration bars with them in case this disease-ridden era has high instances of food poisoning? Jake Dominguez on Wednesday, May 24, 2000 - 8:23 pm: I would imagine that when new officers sign up in Starfleet they get an overall inoculation for most types of known biohazards and harmful organisms. After all, the crew visits new planets every other week. I concur with you on the food issue, Shira. A lot of deadly diseases prevalent in the 1800's spread through bad food and water. Plus it never looks like they can carry anything in those uniforms. It would have been satisfactory to see the Away Teams every so often carry a big rucksack for supplies. Seniram That would further increase the risk of polluting the timeline. Keith Ratliff on Wednesday, October 18, 2000 - 12:29 am: About the sicknesses, a majority of sicknesses take days to manifest. They probably just go to sick bay and have the diseases purged (when they return). We do not know how long they were there, although it had to be at least 3 days. It may have not been enough for the diseases to manifest. Sophie Hawksworth on Wednesday, July 04, 2001 - 3:57 am: Diseases would be purged by the biofilters in the transporter when they return to the ship. # Rene on Sunday, September 24, 2000 - 8:48 am: Why didn't they try to activate the 500 year old head and ask it what happened? It would have needed emergency repair work and a spare body! # Keith Ratliff on Wednesday, October 18, 2000 - 12:29 am: When they are shown the head, that the officer found in the cave, Picard and Data look at each other. Neither one then, nor anyone else later, asks where the body is, or even looks for it. Why? They probably assumed it had been destroyed by what severed the head. # Endora on Monday, February 26, 2001 - 10:22 am: Not that it might be a big deal, but now isn't Data's head 500 years older than his body? ScottN on Monday, February 26, 2001 - 11:10 am: Yes, it is. And your point would be? Will on Tuesday, July 03, 2001 - 10:33 am: I'm guessing that Endora's point is that the delicate machinery and electronic whatevers are now 500 years old, and should have experienced some decay, or (gonna get gross here) bugs and parasites entering via Data's nose, and openings in the connections sticking out of his neck to nest. There'd have to be little openings to allow it to be connected to his body. Frankly, I'm amazed that Dr.Soong created something that could last that long, albeit in an inert state. Will on Tuesday, July 03, 2001 - 10:33 am: The head should also have been covered in alot more dirt, if not partially broken down by natural erosion, as it was subjected to all of the earthquakes in the San Francisco area for 500 years, and not once did a rock hit the head, and tear the skin, and break an eyeball. Adam Bomb (Abomb) on Friday, September 02, 2011 - 8:06 am: Watch the episode on Sy-Fy HD. Although the episode was probably not converted to HD for broadcast on Sy-Fy's HD channel, it appears dirtier than in the SD broadcasts. It still should have been dirtier than it was, however. Luigi Novi (Luigi_novi) on Friday, September 02, 2011 - 2:17 pm: Isn't it possible that whoever found it brushed it off when they did so, in order to identify what type of object it was? # Will on Tuesday, July 03, 2001 - 10:33 am: I'll never understand why they had to slap the time travel element into the alien's need for energy. There's plenty of primitive planets out there, even in the 24th century, so why not drain those people? Time travel AND space travel combined is too much of a waste of energy. Using time travel to an earlier period allows them to hide what they are doing as the deaths would be recorded as a natural consequence of the era. =Notes= =Sources= Category:Episodes Category:The Next Generation